Executive Summary
Sickness in the workplace is both a matter of personal health, and corporate productivity. Both Vitamin D3 and get deep sleep can help employees stay healthy.
Disclaimer
Don’t believe me. I am not a doctor, just a cybersecurity nerd who makes a hobby of studying nutrition.
As one of my mentors used to be fond of saying, “Do your own homework.” This is especially true in matters of health. You get to have just one body. You should be researching it, how it works, and how to care of it more than you watch football scores or the vicissitudes of the stock market.
The Virus
Right now there is a global effort to contain the Coronavirus after the Wuhan outbreak.
And, like usual, many people are scared with some freaking out about this virus from the SARS family.
Around the time of the SARS outbreak 17 years ago, several monumental studies had been conducted regarding the therapeutic uses of Vitamin D3 in combating these types of viruses.
As you probably know, Coronaviruses are a group of viruses[i], not just 2019-nCoV or "Wuhan Coronavirus" that is making the news. SARS would be classified as a Coronavirus. Similarly, one of the viruses that cause the Common Cold is classified as a Coronavirus[ii].
Both Coronaviruses and Orthomyxoviridae (which causes several strains of influenza) are so called "enveloped" viruses and can putatively be mitigated by Vitamin D3 supplementation.
Vitamin D
Interestingly, Vitamin D is not a vitamin!
Vitamin D is actually more of a steroidal hormone that comes in two forms, D2 and D3[iii] (herein, when referring to Vitamin D, I refer to the D3 form). It is responsible for proper bone formation (along with calcium and magnesium), disease prevention[iv] and immune function.
The therapeutic use of Vitamin D first came to my attention during the SARS outbreak.
Back then, I was following the old advice of Vitamin C supplementation for the common cold and flu. But I began to find studies[v] that equated the efficacy of Vitamin D3 with that that of a flu shot. This got my attention.
Later I read an article on the Life Extension magazine about the use of Vitamin D in their Influenza Protocol[vi]. After research, I was hooked! I have been supplementing my diet with therapeutic amounts of vitamin D ever since. It has helped quite a lot.
Race
No. We are not all the same.
If you are a 100 lb. 5’0” woman, you will need a different amount of food, nutrition, and drugs than a 280 lb. 6’10” man. This is why it is important to check blood levels of Vitamin D when you can.
Similarly, you may have noticed that different races tend to have different skin colors. Theses skin colors are responsible for mediating the effects of ultraviolet light (among other things), and ultraviolet light is responsible for the production of Vitamin D in our bodies. So, the darker your skin, the higher the need for Vitamin D, than for lighter skinned people.
In fact, many medical studies implicate lack of Vitamin D for the higher incidence of disease among African descended peoples in the United States, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and some cancers, all of which are as prevalent or more prevalent among Blacks than Whites[vii].
Interestingly enough, this is why many recommend Blacks use tanning machines at the gym. To get more Vitamin D3[viii].
Yes. We are all the same.
Most of us work in offices, commute inside vehicles, then go straight home, thus avoiding the sun and its Vitamin D benefits. Therefor, even if you have light skin, you are probably deficient in Vitamin D[ix].
Sleep
As we move deeper into the 21st century, we are understanding more and more about sleep, particularly a type of sleep called slow wave sleep, or just deep sleep.
There are 5 stages of sleep that follow each other in a cyclical pattern each night. They are wake, relaxed wakefulness, light sleep, deep sleep, and REM[x]. (If you have a Fitbit Versa, you can see this in action).
As it turns out, Lack of deep sleep, can have a deleterious effect on your immune system.
The NIH calls sleep a, “moderator of the immune system.” They conclude that:
…sleep modulates immune system cells and modulators; women who were deprived of sleep for 77 hours under battlefield-like conditions experienced changes in IFN (interferon) production and phagocytic activity. Subsequent studies reported that sleep deprivation decreases lymphocyte blastogenesis and NK cell (Natural killer cells) activity and upregulates IL-1 and IL-2 (interleukin). Further, youth who have been sleep-deprived for 64 h experience a significant rise in NK cells, granulocytes, and monocytes.
Translation: make sure you get nightly deep sleep so that your immune system can function correctly.
Contraindications.
There are no contraindications for seep sleep. I know of no slow wave sleep allergies (except when it is nap time for your toddler).
However, there is an upper limit for Vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 can be toxic when blood levels get too high due to “chronic consumption of approximately 40,000 IU/day (100 of the 400 IU capsules)[xi]”.
Additionally, if you are being treated for any disease or are on certain types of medication, you may not be able to take supplemental Vitamin D[xii]. So check with your doctor.
Conclusion
In order to fight winter infections Life Extension Magazine has established “minimum target level for optimal disease prevention is over 50 ng/mL of 25-hydroxyvitamin D.[xiii]” They recommend that all of their members, “should supplement with 5,000 to 8,000 IU of vitamin D3 each day—especially in winter months.”
So get sleep, get Vitamin D3, talk to your doctor, do your own homework, and stay healthy.
[i] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus
[ii] https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/256521.php#what-are-coronaviruses
[iii] https://www.alpco.com/vitamin-d-metabolism-function
[iv] https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-vitamin-d/art-20363792
[v] https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6583
[vi] https://www.lifeextension.com/magazine/2010/1/what-to-do-if-you-contract-influenza
[vii] https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/136/4/1126/4664238
[viii] https://www.tanrepublic.com/importance-tanning-african-american-vitamin-d-darker-skin/
[ix] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3068797/
[x] https://landing.ouraring.com/ln1d-stages-of-sleep?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=IP_US-CA_G%7Cs-o-s-ln1_ln1d&utm_term=%7Bkeyword%7D&utm_content=%7Bcreative%7D&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsbrxBRDpARIsAAnnz_MJZ5KcF-iM6cxMsmdHyK40ef5mkm9C18j4zMeN_GEhmbTAeXfMZUAaAokPEALw_wcB
[xi] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3798924/
[xii] https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-6152/cholecalciferol-vitamin-d3-oral/details/list-contraindications
[xiii] https://www.lifeextension.com/Magazine/2010/1/Startling-Findings-About-Vitamin-D-Levels-in-Life-Extension-Members
Sickness in the workplace is both a matter of personal health, and corporate productivity. Both Vitamin D3 and get deep sleep can help employees stay healthy.
Disclaimer
Don’t believe me. I am not a doctor, just a cybersecurity nerd who makes a hobby of studying nutrition.
As one of my mentors used to be fond of saying, “Do your own homework.” This is especially true in matters of health. You get to have just one body. You should be researching it, how it works, and how to care of it more than you watch football scores or the vicissitudes of the stock market.
The Virus
Right now there is a global effort to contain the Coronavirus after the Wuhan outbreak.
And, like usual, many people are scared with some freaking out about this virus from the SARS family.
Around the time of the SARS outbreak 17 years ago, several monumental studies had been conducted regarding the therapeutic uses of Vitamin D3 in combating these types of viruses.
As you probably know, Coronaviruses are a group of viruses[i], not just 2019-nCoV or "Wuhan Coronavirus" that is making the news. SARS would be classified as a Coronavirus. Similarly, one of the viruses that cause the Common Cold is classified as a Coronavirus[ii].
Both Coronaviruses and Orthomyxoviridae (which causes several strains of influenza) are so called "enveloped" viruses and can putatively be mitigated by Vitamin D3 supplementation.
Vitamin D
Interestingly, Vitamin D is not a vitamin!
Vitamin D is actually more of a steroidal hormone that comes in two forms, D2 and D3[iii] (herein, when referring to Vitamin D, I refer to the D3 form). It is responsible for proper bone formation (along with calcium and magnesium), disease prevention[iv] and immune function.
The therapeutic use of Vitamin D first came to my attention during the SARS outbreak.
Back then, I was following the old advice of Vitamin C supplementation for the common cold and flu. But I began to find studies[v] that equated the efficacy of Vitamin D3 with that that of a flu shot. This got my attention.
Later I read an article on the Life Extension magazine about the use of Vitamin D in their Influenza Protocol[vi]. After research, I was hooked! I have been supplementing my diet with therapeutic amounts of vitamin D ever since. It has helped quite a lot.
Race
No. We are not all the same.
If you are a 100 lb. 5’0” woman, you will need a different amount of food, nutrition, and drugs than a 280 lb. 6’10” man. This is why it is important to check blood levels of Vitamin D when you can.
Similarly, you may have noticed that different races tend to have different skin colors. Theses skin colors are responsible for mediating the effects of ultraviolet light (among other things), and ultraviolet light is responsible for the production of Vitamin D in our bodies. So, the darker your skin, the higher the need for Vitamin D, than for lighter skinned people.
In fact, many medical studies implicate lack of Vitamin D for the higher incidence of disease among African descended peoples in the United States, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and some cancers, all of which are as prevalent or more prevalent among Blacks than Whites[vii].
Interestingly enough, this is why many recommend Blacks use tanning machines at the gym. To get more Vitamin D3[viii].
Yes. We are all the same.
Most of us work in offices, commute inside vehicles, then go straight home, thus avoiding the sun and its Vitamin D benefits. Therefor, even if you have light skin, you are probably deficient in Vitamin D[ix].
Sleep
As we move deeper into the 21st century, we are understanding more and more about sleep, particularly a type of sleep called slow wave sleep, or just deep sleep.
There are 5 stages of sleep that follow each other in a cyclical pattern each night. They are wake, relaxed wakefulness, light sleep, deep sleep, and REM[x]. (If you have a Fitbit Versa, you can see this in action).
As it turns out, Lack of deep sleep, can have a deleterious effect on your immune system.
The NIH calls sleep a, “moderator of the immune system.” They conclude that:
…sleep modulates immune system cells and modulators; women who were deprived of sleep for 77 hours under battlefield-like conditions experienced changes in IFN (interferon) production and phagocytic activity. Subsequent studies reported that sleep deprivation decreases lymphocyte blastogenesis and NK cell (Natural killer cells) activity and upregulates IL-1 and IL-2 (interleukin). Further, youth who have been sleep-deprived for 64 h experience a significant rise in NK cells, granulocytes, and monocytes.
Translation: make sure you get nightly deep sleep so that your immune system can function correctly.
Contraindications.
There are no contraindications for seep sleep. I know of no slow wave sleep allergies (except when it is nap time for your toddler).
However, there is an upper limit for Vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 can be toxic when blood levels get too high due to “chronic consumption of approximately 40,000 IU/day (100 of the 400 IU capsules)[xi]”.
Additionally, if you are being treated for any disease or are on certain types of medication, you may not be able to take supplemental Vitamin D[xii]. So check with your doctor.
Conclusion
In order to fight winter infections Life Extension Magazine has established “minimum target level for optimal disease prevention is over 50 ng/mL of 25-hydroxyvitamin D.[xiii]” They recommend that all of their members, “should supplement with 5,000 to 8,000 IU of vitamin D3 each day—especially in winter months.”
So get sleep, get Vitamin D3, talk to your doctor, do your own homework, and stay healthy.
[i] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus
[ii] https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/256521.php#what-are-coronaviruses
[iii] https://www.alpco.com/vitamin-d-metabolism-function
[iv] https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-vitamin-d/art-20363792
[v] https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6583
[vi] https://www.lifeextension.com/magazine/2010/1/what-to-do-if-you-contract-influenza
[vii] https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/136/4/1126/4664238
[viii] https://www.tanrepublic.com/importance-tanning-african-american-vitamin-d-darker-skin/
[ix] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3068797/
[x] https://landing.ouraring.com/ln1d-stages-of-sleep?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=IP_US-CA_G%7Cs-o-s-ln1_ln1d&utm_term=%7Bkeyword%7D&utm_content=%7Bcreative%7D&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsbrxBRDpARIsAAnnz_MJZ5KcF-iM6cxMsmdHyK40ef5mkm9C18j4zMeN_GEhmbTAeXfMZUAaAokPEALw_wcB
[xi] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3798924/
[xii] https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-6152/cholecalciferol-vitamin-d3-oral/details/list-contraindications
[xiii] https://www.lifeextension.com/Magazine/2010/1/Startling-Findings-About-Vitamin-D-Levels-in-Life-Extension-Members